The invention relates to a device with a component to be cleaned that is disposed within a process air circuit of a washer dryer or tumble dryer, in particular an evaporator of a condenser device, and with a condensate water trough, in which condensate water formed in the process air circuit as a result of the drying of damp laundry can be collected, conducted from this to a rinse tank provided above the evaporator and dispensed from this out of an outlet opening to the component to be cleaned. The invention also relates to a method for operating such a device.
A method and a device of the type mentioned above are already known for removing lint from a condensed water separator configured as a heat exchanger (DE 37 38 031 C2). With the known method in question and the device provided to implement it a relatively small quantity of around half a liter of condensed water is used for a single rinsing operation for the plates of the condenser device provided. The rinsing process in question here takes around 30 seconds. To actively remove lint that remains suspended in the condenser device when damp laundry is dried from the condenser device in question, the condenser device has to be rinsed relatively thoroughly. This requires the use of a relatively powerful pump, which pumps the condensate water out of the condensate water trough to the rinsing device present. However there is sometimes a wish to avoid such a major outlay and manage with a simpler arrangement, to clean a component disposed within a process air circuit of a washer dryer or tumble dryer, in particular an evaporator of a condenser device, using the condensate water collected in a condensate water trough.
A device for cleaning the evaporator of a condenser device in a tumble dryer is also known (EP 0 468 573 A1). With this known device the evaporator of the condenser device, which consists of a plurality of fins disposed parallel to one another, can be cleaned on its side opposite a condensate water trough by means of a cleaning device. This cleaning device consists of a comb-type brush or bristle arrangement that can be moved to and fro and to which condensate water contained in the condensate water trough can also be supplied. However with this known device the evaporator of the condenser device is cleaned relatively inadequately, as the comb-type cleaning device is only able to clean the upper region of the evaporator of the condenser device but not the much larger region below it. This could possibly be cleaned, if the comb-type cleaning device were provided with bristles extending over the entire depth of the evaporator. However this would require a relatively high energy outlay and therefore a relatively high outlay in respect of equipment due to the associated significant friction between the bristles of the comb-type cleaning device and the side walls of the fins of the evaporator, if it were to function at all. Such an outlay is however considered to be undesirable.
A method and a household tumble dryer for cleaning a section of a guide of a process air flow are also known (DE 199 43 125 A1). Here a blower is provided to generate the process air flow, which can be brought into contact with the laundry to be dried in order to absorb moisture in a drying compartment. Outside a drying phase in which the process air flow is generated by means of the blower and brought into contact with the laundry to be dried in the drying compartment, in a cleaning phase with the blower switched off at least part of a section of the process air guide is flooded with liquid for a defined time period. At the end of the cleaning phase this liquid is again removed from the flooded section of the process air guide. The liquid in question is in particular condensate liquid from a condensate tank in which condensate water from the drying of damp laundry collects as the laundry is dried. In order to be able to achieve the abovementioned flooding of the abovementioned one section of the process air guide, said section should be sealed off by means of a sealing arrangement, which is however sometimes considered to be undesirable due to the associated outlay. A simpler solution is therefore sought for cleaning a component disposed within a process air circuit of a washer dryer or tumble dryer.